“This letter is from Simon Peter, a slave and apostle of Jesus Christ. I am writing to you who share the same precious faith we have. This faith was given to you because of the justice and fairness of Jesus Christ, our God and Savior. May God give you more and more grace and peace as you grow in your knowledge of God and Jesus our Lord. By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. We have received all of this by coming to know him, the one who called us to himself by means of his marvelous glory and excellence. And because of his glory and excellence, he has given us great and precious promises. These are the promises that enable you to share his divine nature and escape the world’s corruption caused by human desires. In view of all this, make every effort to respond to God’s promises. Supplement your faith with a generous provision of moral excellence, and moral excellence with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with patient endurance, and patient endurance with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love for everyone. The more you grow like this, the more productive and useful you will be in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. But those who fail to develop in this way are shortsighted or blind, forgetting that they have been cleansed from their old sins. So, dear brothers and sisters, work hard to prove that you really are among those God has called and chosen. Do these things, and you will never fall away. Then God will give you a grand entrance into the eternal Kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.”
Peter shares an amazing truth: “God’s divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life.”Did you catch that? “Everything.” Not just some things, but everything you need to live a life that honors God—a life that’s holy, meaningful, and full of purpose. Philippians 4:19 also reminds us, “My God will supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus.” God has provided everything we need to live the life He calls us to. But this isn’t a promise of getting everything we want—like the perfect job, marriage, or lifestyle.
Instead, this verse promises that God has given us everything we need to become the person He created us to be and to fulfill HIS purposes for us. The real question is: are we using what God has already provided? Peter tells us that we access this power “through our knowledge of Him who called us.” This “knowledge” isn’t just knowing facts about God. It’s about having a real, personal relationship with Him—understanding His goodness, love, and power.
Whenever we sin, we in that moment are believing a lie. We are believing that thing or that person will bring us joy, so to combat that we need the knowledge of God, the knowledge that he is good and his promises for us, that sin will only bring death and is never worth it.
When we know and cling to these promises, we are reminded that God is good and we can resist temptation. We have everything we need to live the life he calls us to live!
Don’t misunderstand me, we will still sin, because we all forget Gods goodness. We forget his promises. Which is why everyday I need to remind myself through the word of his goodness and his promises. Because we are all gospel amnesiacs at times. Thank God for his grace and sending his son!